WARBLERS 



167 



The Canada Warbler is a particularly inter- 

 esting,' bird because nf bis attractixi' necklace of 

 iilack ])endants on a yellow breast, and because 

 of his sweet warblini; litiuid ■'oni,'. The s(int;- has 

 been S|ielled nif^-il-cJic, nif^-it-rlii-. ntf'-il-i-liitt- 

 it-lit. and also t'lc wc. t'lc wc. tic wc. tic wc. tl 

 it Te;7. The bird haunts the shrubbery, wild 

 \ ines, and bushes of thick undergrow th in \ ery 

 much the same localities as the Wilson lilackcap. 

 Damp and dense coverts are where the nests are 

 foimd. The Wilsons on the way north h.ardlv 

 leave any jiairs south of the L'anadi.-m zone. 

 Many pairs of the Canada Necklace, however, 

 drop off to breed, all through the northern States, 



thoui;h the main body of the mi^jrants go on to 

 C'anada. The C'anada is iiuleed a near relative 

 iif the Hooded and \\ ilsdii Warblers, and shows 

 it by its habits. Like them it is a flycatcher, 

 taking much of its food on the wing, although 

 like a true \\arbler it also gleans among the 

 leaves. 



In the spring ami fall migrations this bird is 

 not so exceedingly rare as to call for the same 

 enthusiasm, when found by bird obsei^ers, that 

 would follow the finding of a Kirtland Warbler. 

 Vet few observations of the bird are made with- 

 iiut a thrill of |ileasure liecause of its comparative 

 raritv and beauty. 



REDSTART 

 Setophaga ruticilla ( Liinucus) 



. 11. I'. Numln-r (.87 ^ic Color V\Mf 9," 



Other Names. — American Redstart ; Redstart Warb- 

 ler; Reii^-tart Flycatcher: l-"ire-tail ; Yellow-tailed 

 Warbler. 



General Description. — Length, 5.'4 inches. M.m.e: 

 Fore and upper parts, black ; under parts, white ; 

 patches of reddish-orange and white. F'em.m.e: Upper 

 parts, gray and olive-green; under parts, white; patches 

 of yellow and white. Bill, about Jj length of head, 

 much depressed, its profile wedge-shaped; wings, 

 rather long and pointed; tail, shorter than wing, de- 

 cidedly rounded, the feathers broad. 



Color. — .\dult M.\le : Head, neck, chest, and upper 

 parts, uniform black, with decided bluish gloss, except 

 on wings and tail; basal portion of '(.ving-quills (crccpt 

 tzt'o innermost iK.nng-quills) and more than basal half 

 of tail-feathers except tzeo (sometimes only one) miitdte 

 pairs, pate orange, this occupying the full width of both 

 webs ; a large patch on each side of chest and breast, 

 and under wing-coverts, orange-red ; rest of under 

 parts, white, usually with black between the orange-red 

 lateral patches and the white in middle of breast ; 

 longer under tail-coverts, sometimes partly black or 

 dusky ; bill, black in spring and summer, more brown- 

 ish in fall and winter ; iris, brown ; legs and feet, 

 blackish. Adult Female: \'ery different from the 

 adult male. Crown and hindneck, plain mouse-gray ; 

 back, shoulders, and rump, grayish olive-green ; upper 

 tail-coverts, middle tail-feathers, terminal portion of 

 others, dusky ; wings, dusky ( not so dark as dusky 

 portion of tail) with light olive edgings; basal portion 

 of wing- and tail-feathers ( e.xcept one or two middle 



pairs and two innermost secondaries), light yeliuw, 

 that on the wings more restricted than the orange-red 

 in the male, often not showing at all on primaries ; 

 sides of head, paler gray than crown, especially the 

 lores and region over eye; cheeks, chin, throat, and 

 chest, dull grayish-white ; rest of under parts, more 

 decidedly white, icith a conspicuous patch of yellozv on 

 each side of chest and breast, the center portion of 

 breast, together with sides and flanks, sometimes tinged 

 with yellow ; bill, dark brown or brownish-black in 

 summer, pale brown in winter; iris, legs, and feet as in 

 adult male. 



Nest and Eggs. — Nest : A compact, cup-shaped 

 structure placed in fork of sapling or bush, usually 

 within 15 feet of the ground ; composed of plant 

 fibers, strips of bark, and grass, neatly lashed together 

 with spiders' webs, and lined with fine grasses and hair. 

 Eggs : Usually 4, rarely 5, quite variable in coloration ; 

 ground color white to greenish or grayish-white, 

 marked with specks and spots of cinnamon-brown or 

 lilac, generally wreathed around larger end. 



Distribution. — North America and northern South 

 .■\merica ; breeds from central British Columbia, west 

 central Mackenzie, southern Keewatin, northern Quebec, 

 and Newfoundland to Washington, northern Utah, 

 Colorado, central Oklahoma, Arkansas, and North 

 Carolina ; rarely breeds in the southeastern United 

 States south of latitude 35° ; casual in migration in 

 Oregon, California, Lower California, Arizona, and 

 nortliern Ungava ; winters in West Indies and from 

 central Me.xico to Ecuador and British Guiana. 



The Ixedstart is not onlv one of the most con- 

 spicuously colored of the Warblers, but is per- 

 haps the tnost restless and active of this 

 essentially nervous and fidgety faiuily. It is no 

 exaggeration to say that the male bird is almost 

 never still wdnile he is awake, and that the female 



is motionless only when she is incubating. Not 

 content with incessant hopping, skipping, and 

 fluttering from limb to liough and from bough to 

 twig in its ceaseless search for larvae and bugs 

 of all kinds, the bird frequently darts off into 

 space, or down to the ground, or against a tree- 



